Tobacco elevators



0 1967 D. c. STEWART, SR 3,344,339

TQBACCO ELEVATORS 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. .3, 1966 cu m INVENTOR:

DAVID C. STEWART, SR.

Oct. 3, 1967 D. c. STEWART, SR 3,

TOBACCO ELEVATORS Filed 001?. 5, 1966 5 Sheetsheet 43 i W" Q 32 T 22 I?2Q :P 42 H 26 191 45 4s 21G I I '1 45 T I 27 ,1 53 4O 25 25 I s i" l8DAVID c. STEWAR'LSR.

Oct. 3, 1957 D. c. STEWART, SR 8 TOBACCO ELEVATORS [1 fl 39 Z 53\NVENTOR: I6 43 1 l DAVID c. STEWART,SR.

United States Patent 3,344,889 TOBACCO ELEVATORS David C. Stewart, Sr.,P.O. Box 193, Ellerbe, N.C. 28338 Filed Oct. 3, 1966, Ser. No. 583,899 6Claims. (Cl. 187-9) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention relates tonew and useful improvements in conveyor type lifts or elevators forsticks of tobacco, andin particular the invention concerns itself withcertain structural and functional improvements in a lift of the typedisclosed in my co-pending United States patent application Serial No.502,960, filed Oct. 23, 1965, now

Patent No. 3,283,856, dated Nov. 8-, 1966.

The aforementioned application discloses a portable lift or elevatorhaving an upstanding framework supported by a wheeled base, theframework carrying a'pair of transversely spaced, endless conveyorchains with prongs on which sticks of tobacco .may be placed for raisingsuch-sticks to the top of a barn for curing.

The principal object of the present invention is to improve upon theaforementioned lift so that the same may be used not only for elevatingsticks of green tobacco to the top of the barn, but also for loweringsticks of cured tobacco from the barn and depositing the same in asubstantially horizontal position on a conveyor belt, so that thetobacco may be moved out of the barn for loading on a truck, or thelike.

As such, the elevator chains of the improved machine are provided withprongs which are capable of supporting tobacco sticks on both theascending and the descending runs of the chains, and an importantfeature of the invention resides in the provision of automaticallyactuated means for engaging tobacco leaves on descending sticks andtranslating the leaves from a vertical hangingposition to asubstantially horizontal lying position for proper depositing thereof ona conveyor belt at the bottom of the elevator.

Another important improvement involves the provision of means forholding a tobacco stick adjacent the lower end of the ascending run ofthe elevator so that the stick may be automatically picked up by theprongs on the chains and carried upwardly, thus eliminating thenecessity of holding the stick by hand and possibly not placing thestick properly on the prongs. In conjunction with this same improvement,the invention also provides means for guiding the elevator chains andprongs into proper engagement with a tobacco stick supported by thestick holding means, so that engagement of the stick by the prongs iassured.

The elevator chains are motor-driven, and another important feature ofthe invention resides in the provision of means for automaticallyinterrupting the operation of the chain driving motor when a stick oftobacco approaches the top of the elevator, so that there is nopossibility of the tobacco stick being dumped over the 3,344,889Patented Oct. 3, 1967 top when for some reason it is not manuallyremoved as soon as it reaches its elevated position.

Still another important feature of the invention resides in thearrangement of the elevator framework which includes a pair oftransversely spaced uprights provided at their upper and lower ends withsprockets for the elevator chains, each upright comprising two slidablytelescoped members so that the framework may be readily collapsed to acompact form for ease of transportation when the elevator is to be movedfrom one location to another. Also, the invention provides means forsustaining the slidably telescoped upright members in their extendedposition, such means being adjustable longitudinally of the uprights tofacilitate taking up of slack in the elevator chains.

The improved elevator of the invention is simple in construction,dependable in operation, easily portable, and lends itself to economicalmanufacture.

With the foregoing more important object and features in view and suchother objects and features as may become apparent as this specificationproceeds, the invention will be understood from the followingdescription taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, whereinlike characters of reference are used to designate like parts, andwherein:

- FIGURE 1 is an end elevational view showing the improved tobacco stickelevator of the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a side elevational view thereof;

FIGURE 3 is a top plan view;

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view, taken substantiallyin the plane of the line 44 in FIG. 3;

FIGURE 5 is an enlarged vertical sectional detail, taken substantiallyin the plane of the line 55 in FIG. 4;

FIGURE 6 is an enlarged, fragmentary vertical sectional view showing theapron, chain guide and stick holder adjacent the lower end of theascending run of the elevator;

FIGURE 7 is a-fragmentary side elevational view of the subject shown inFIG. 6; 7

FIGURE 8 is an enlarged, fragmentary sectional view,

taken substantially in the plane of the line -88 in FIG. 2,

FIGURE 9 is an enlarged, fragmentary vertical sectional view showing theleaf translating means at the lower end of the descending run;

FIGURE 10 is a fragmentary view, similar to that in FIG. 9, but with thetranslating means in another position;

FIGURE 11 is a fragmentary elevational view of the translating means,taken in the direction of the arrow 11 in FIG. 9; and- FIGURE 12 is afragmentary sectional detail, taken substantially in the plane of theline 1212 in FIG. 9.

Referring now 'to the accompanying drawings in detail, the tobacco stickelevator of the invention is designated generally by the numeral 15. Thesame comprises a substantially rectangular base 16 fabricated from angle-'bars, or the like, one end of the base being provided .with a pair oftraveling wheels 17 While it other end .is equipped with a pair of legsor feet 18.

An upstanding framework designated generally by the numeral 19 ismounted on the base 16, the framework including a pair of transverselyspaced uprights 20 which are rigidly connected together by a pluralityof transverse braces 21, 22, 23. The upper and lower ends of theuprights 20 support upper and lower sprockets 24, 25 for a pair ofendless conveyor chains 26, the lower sprockets 25 being connectedtogether by a drive shaft 27 which is driven through a chain drive 28 byan electric motor 29 3 equipped with a reduction gearbox 30. The motor 29 is conveniently mounted on suitable cross members 31 of the base 16,as shown in FIG. 3.

It will be appreciated that the uprights 20 have been broken away in thedrawings and that actually they are of. substantial height, on the orderof 20 or 25 feet or more, so that the elevator may extend upwardly tothe top of a barn. As is best shown in FIG. 5, each upright 1 consistsof two slidably telescoped members 20a, 20b so that when these membersare slid together, the overall height of the framework 19 may be reducedto approximately one-half to afford compactness and convenienttransportation of the entire elevator from one location to another. Suchtransportation is effected by simply raising the end of the base 16equipped withthe legs 18 and wheeling the machine on the wheels 17 in atilted position in much the same manner as a wheelbarrow.

'Means are provided for sustaining the upright members 20a, 20b in anextended, operative position, suchmeans being designated generally bythe numeral 32 in FIGS. 2 and 4,'and being shown in detail in connectionwith one of the uprights in FIG. 5. The means 32 comprises a pair ofangle brackets 33 secured to opposite sides of the upper end portion ofthe upright member 20a, while a pair of similar brackets 34 are securedto the ends of a transverse pin 35 provided in the upright member 20b.The brackets 33, 34 are apertured to receive a pair of screw-threadedrods 36 having nuts 37 thereon in abutment with the brackets, it beingapparent that in this manner the upright members 20a, 20b are sustainedin their extended position as shown. Moreover, since the nuts 37 areadjustable on the rods 36, the adjustment permits the member 20b to beraised or lowered relative to the member 20a, thus providing a facilityfor taking up slack such as may exist in the conveyor chains 26. Atleast one of the brackets 34 may be removably secured to the pin 35, asby a screw 38, so that upon its removal the pin may be withdrawn fromthe upright member 20b to permit the latter to be telescoped into themember 20a for purposes of transportion of the machine as alreadymentioned.

The lower sprockets 25 of the conveyor chains 26 are spaced upwardlyfrom the base 16 and accordingly, the uprights 20 are supported in anelevated position above the base by angulated members 39, 40 of theframework 19, as will be apparent from FIGS. 1-4. The framework member39 is provided with a rigid, upward'extension 41, the purpose of whichwill be hereinafter described.

The conveyor chains 26 are driven by the motor 29 in one direction asindicated by the arrows 42, so the chains have an ascending run on'oneside and a descending run on the relatively opposite side of theframework 19. Transversely aligned prongs 43 are provided atlongitudinally spaced points on the chains 26, these prongs beingsubstantially T-shaped and having end portions which project bothdownwardly and upwardly, so that tobacco sticks shown by the dottedlines 44 may be supported on the prongs at either the ascending or thedescending run of the conveyor, depending upon whether the sticks are tobe raised or lowered in the barn.

At the ascending side of the conveyor the chains 26 pass throughbox-like guides 45 which are secured to lower end portions of theuprights 20, the guides 45 being open at the bottom and top thereof tofacilitate passage of the "chains and prongs therethrough, but beingsufficiently con- 'picked up, as will be presently explained. The guides45 are formed at the top thereof with notches 46 constituting seats orholders in which a tobacco stick 44 may be positioned for conveyancefrom the bottom tothetopof the elevator. When the chains 26 are drivenin the direction of the arrows 42, the prongs 43 will pass upwardlythrough the guides 45 as shown in FIG. 6 and will come into engagementwith the stick 44 seated in the notches 46, thus picking up the stickand carrying the same upwardly to the top of the elevator. It will beapparent that the provision of the stick holding notches 46 avoids thenecessity of holding the stick by hand while waiting for it to bepickedup by the conveyor prongs. A suitable panel or apron 47 issupported in a slanting position between the guides 45 so that tobaccoleaves, indicated by the dotted lines 48, may rest against the apronWhile the tobacco stick supporting the leaves is seated in the notches46 in readiness to be picked up by the conveyor prongs. The apron 47maybe conveniently attached to the lower end portions of the uprights 20and to the framework member 40, with the upper edge portion of the apronbeing angulated to provide the aforementioned brace 21 between theuprights.

As shown in detail in FIG. 8, means are provided for automaticallyinterrupting operation of the motor 29 when a stick of tobaccoapproaches the upper end of the elevator, so that the stick'do'es notbecome dumpedover the top if for some reason it is not manually removedas soon as it reaches its elevated position. These means comprise anelectric switch 49 which is mounted near the upper end of one of theuprights 20 and is provided with a swingable actuating member or arm 50which projects into the path of movement of the tobacco stick 44 whenthe stick approaches the upperend of the elevator. The switch 49 isnormally closed and is wired in series with a main on and on switch 51for controlling the motor 29. The switch 51 is a manually operatedswitch which is conveniently installed on the framework 19, and whenboth switches 49, 51 areclosed, the motor 29 is inoperation and theconveyor chains 26 'are driven. However, when a stick of tobacco 44approaches the top of the elevator, it comes into engagement with theactuating arm 50 of the switch 49 and causes the switch 49 to open,thusinterrupting the How of current to the motor and automaticallystopping the elevator. The arm 50 of the switch 49 is'spring-biased andas soon as the tobacco stick is removed from the top of the elevator,the switch 49 automatically closes and operation of the motor 29 isresumed until the next tobacco stick comes into position at the top ofthe lift. The position of the switch arm 50 when'engaged by a tobaccostick inthe open position of the switch is indicated at 50a in FIG.'8.

As already noted, the elevator may be used either for raising sticks ofgreen tobacco to the top of the barn or for lowering sticks of curedtobacco from the top. In the latter instance the tobacco sticksaresimply placed on the prongs 43 at the top of the descending run of theconveyor chains, so that they may be conveyed downwardly toward themachine base 16. Ordinarily, it is customary to load the lower'ed sticksonto a conveyor belt running to the outside of the barn, where thesticks may then be loaded on a truck, or the like. The conveyor beltdoes not constitute a component of this invention, but for illustrativepurposes is shown by the dotted lines 52, with its end portion overlyingthe base 16 below the level of the lower chain sprockets 25. Since thetobacco leaves 48 are suspended vertically from the stick 44 whichcarries them, it is -apparent that it is desirable to translate theleaves to a substantially horizontal lying position before depositingthem on the conveyor belt'52.

The invention attains such translation of the tobacco leaves in thelower portion of the descending run of the elevator by providing ahorizontal bar or rod 53 which extends transversely under the descendingrun of the chains 26. One end of the bar 53 is rigidly secured to aslide 54 which is reciprocable in horizontally elongated guide means 55,the guide means being secured at one end thereof to the framework member39 and extending laterally outwardly therefrom at right angles to theplane of the descending run of the elevator. The bar '53 is'thus capableof lateral translating movement, toward and away from the lower end ofthe elevator when the slide 54 is reciprocated in the guide means 55.

The slide normally is in a position wherein the bar 53 is under thedescending run of the elevator as shown in FIG. 9, so that it is able toengage the vertically disposed tobacco leaves 48 depending from thestick 44. However, as the stick travels downwardly, the slide 54 iscaused to slide outwardly in the guide means 55 to the position shown inFIG. 10. The bar 53, moving with the slide 54, pushes the dependingtobacco leaves laterally outwardly so that they are translated to asubstantially horizontal position for depositing on the conveyor belt 52by the ltime the tobacco stick 44 is dropped from the prongs 43 at thelower end of the descending elevator run.

The slide 54 is slid from the position shown in FIG. 9 to that in FIG.10 automatically in coordination with the descending movement of thetobacco stick on the elevator. This is accomplished by the provision ofan actuating arm or lever 56 which is pivoted intermediate its ends asat 57 to the aforementioned framework extension 41. One end of the arm56 has connected thereto one end of a cord or cable 58, passing over aguide pulley 59 at the upper end of the extension 41 and around furtherguide pulleys 60, 61 provided on the guide means 55, the other end ofthe cable 58 being anchored to the slide 54 as at 62. The other endportion 56 of the arm 56 is angularly offset so as to lie in the path ofmovement of the prongs 43 on the ascending run of the elevator, as isbest shown in FIG. 2. When the elevator is in operation and one of theprongs 43 on the ascending run comes into engagement with the armportion 56', the arm 56 will be swung about the pivot 57 to the positionshown by the dotted lines 56", which will cause a pulling force to beexerted upon the cable 58 which, in turn, will slide the slide 54 fromthe position of FIG. 9 to that of FIG. 10. When the arm portion 56reaches the position 55 it becomes clear of the prong 43 which moved itupwardly, and the arm becomes lowered in readiness for engagement by thenext upcoming conveyor prong. The lowering of the arm takes place bygravity and also by the action of a tension spring 63 which extends fromthe member 39 to the slide 54 and automatically returns the slide to itsinitial position when pulling action by the cable 58 has ceased in thedisengaged position 55" of the actuating arm 56. Of course, it will beunderstood that the arrangement is such that raising of the lever 56 bya prong on the ascending run of the elevator is coordinated withlowering movement of a tobacco stick on the descending run, so that thetranslating bar 53 becomes operative to translate the depending tobaccoleaves to a horizontal position as the stick approaches the lower end ofthe elevator, and also that the lever 56 is not released or the slide 54returned until the tobacco stick in a horizontally lying position hasbeen discharged from the elevator onto the conveyor belt 52.

While in the foregoing there has been described and shown the preferredembodiment of the invention, various modifications may become apparentto those skilled in the art to which the invention relates. Accordingly,it is not desired to limit the invention to this disclosure, and variousmodifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within thespirit and scope of the inventi n a c med 7 What is claimed as new is:

1. A portable elevator for tobacco sticks, comprising in combination asupporting base, an upstanding framework mounted on said base andincluding a pair of transversely spaced uprights, a pair of endlessconveyor chains passing around sprockets at the upper and lower ends ofsaid uprights, tobacco stick engaging prongs provided at longitudinallyspaced points on said chains, means for driving said chains in onedirection whereby the chains have an ascending run at one side and adescending run at the opposite side of said framework, a pair of tobaccostick holders provided on said uprights adjacent the lower end of theascending run of said chains whereby a tobacco stick resting in saidholders may be picked up by said prongs and conveyed upwardly, means forautomatically interrupting operation of said chain driving means when atobacco stick approaches the upper end of the elevator, and meansprovided adjacent the lower end of the descending run of said chains forengaging tobacco leaves on a descending stick and translating the leavesfrom a vertical to a substantially horizontal position.

2. The device as defined in claim 1 wherein each of said uprightscomprises two slidably telescoped upright members, and means forreleasably holding the same in an extended position, wherein saidreleasable holding means being adjustable longitudinally of theuprights, whereby to facilitate taking up of slack in said chains.

3. The device as defined in claim 1 together with a pair of box-likechain and prong guides provided on said uprights and having said chainsextending therethrough, said 'tobacco stick holders being constituted bystick seating notches formed at the top of said guides.

4. The device as defined in claim 1 wherein said leaf engaging andtranslating means includes a horizontal bar extending transversely undersaid chains, means mounting said bar for translating movement laterallyaway from and toward the chains, and means for imparting translatingmovement to said bar.

5. The device as defined in claim 4 wherein said last mentioned meansincludes a pivotally mounted actuating arm releasably engageable by saidprongs, means operatively connecting said arm to said bar fortranslating the bar away from said chains, and resilient means fortranslating the bar toward the chains when said arm is disengaged fromsaid pron-gs.

6. The device as defined in claim 4 wherein said means for mounting saidbar includes horizontally elongated guide means extending laterally awayfrom the lower end of said framework, and a slide reciprocable in saidguide means, said bar being supported by said slide.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,985,430 5/1961 Greenwood 2541433,043,400 7/ 1962 Blume 1873 3,137,396 6/ 1964 Winstead 214-5.53,283,856 11/1966 Stewart 2145.5 3,300,186 1/1967 Lee 254143 EVON C.BLUNK, Primary Examiner.

H. C. HORNSBY, Assistant Examiner.

1. A PORTABLE ELEVATOR FOR TOBACCO STICKS, COMPRISING IN COMBINATION ASUPPORTING BASE, AN UPSTANDING FRAMEWORK MOUNTED ON SAID BASE ANDINCLUDING A PAIR OF TRANSVERSELY SPACED UPRIGHTS, A PAIR OF ENDLESSCONVEYOR CHAINS PASSING AROUND SPROCKETS AT THE UPPER AND LOWER ENDS OFSAID UPRIGHTS, TOBACCO STICK ENGAGING PRONGS PROVIDED AT LONGITUDINALLYSPACED POINTS ON SAID CHAINS, MEANS FOR DRIVING SAID CHAINS IN ONEDIRECTION WHEREBY THE CHAINS HAVE AN ASCENDING RUN AT ONE SIDE AND ADESCENDING RUN AT THE OPPOSITE SIDE OF SAID FRAMEWORK, A PAIR OF TOBACCOSTICK HOLDERS PROVIDED ON SAID UPRIGHTS ADJACENT THE LOWER END OF THEASCENDING RUN OF SAID CHAINS WHEREBY A TOBACCO STICK RESTING IN SAIDHOLDERS MAY BE PICKED UP BY SAID PRONGS AND CONVEYED UPWARDLY, MEANS FORAUTOMATICALLY INTERRUPTING OPERATION OF SAID CHAINS DRIVING MEANS WHEN ATOBACCO STICK APPROACHES THE UPPER END OF THE ELEVATOR, AND MEANSPROVIDED ADJACENT THE LOWER END OF THE DESCENDING RUN OF SAID CHAINS FORENGAGING TOBACCO LEAVES ON A DESCENDING STICK AND TRANSLATING THE LEAVESFROM A VERTICAL TO A SUBSTANTIALLY HORIZONTAL POSITION.